December 31, 2001	Monday	Shawwal 15, 1422

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WASHINGTON, Dec 30: Pakistan has not yet moved any of its forces guarding its western border with Afghanistan to the eastern border, but may be forced to do so if the situation with India aggravates, Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar said in a television interview on Sunday.

Appearing on CNN’s Late Edition, Mr Sattar said at the moment Pakistan was not jumping to conclusions or contemplating precipitate action despite the massing of Indian troops along the Line of Control and the international border.

The foreign minister also referred to the detention of the Jaish-i-Mohammad leader and some others as well as to moves against four or five organizations placed on the sanctions list by the United Nations Security Council, and said if credible evidence was forthcoming against those detained, they would be prosecuted in court.

He said Pakistan did not have an iota of information suggesting that Osama bin Laden was in Pakistan, but if he was found, he would be arrested and an investigation launched and he would be handed over to the United States and coalition forces.

Mr Sattar made a plea for intervention by the international community, including the Security Council, to lessen tensions in the region, and suggested the US could exercise a salutary influence on India which was threatening the use of force.

Asked whether Pakistan was prepared to give an undertaking that it would not be the first to use nuclear weapons, Mr Sattar said nuclear weapons were meant for defence and deterrence, and Pakistan did not want a local, general or nuclear war.

Meanwhile, more details are available about the telephone diplomacy conducted by President George Bush on Saturday.

Apart from talking to Gen Pervez Musharraf, Mr Bush also called British Prime Minister Tony Blair and sought his help in defusing hostilities between Pakistan and India.

Mr Blair is due to travel to India next month, and he and Mr Bush discussed ways in which they could help to prevent war in South Asia.

In a statement on Thursday, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said Britain welcomed Pakistan’s “swift condemnation” of the Dec 11 attack on the Indian parliament building and the recent steps Islamabad has taken against militant groups operating from Pakistani territory. Mr Straw urged General Musharraf to “continue his action against them with resolve and determination”.

On Friday, President Bush had praised Gen Musharraf’s effort in rounding up 50 militants and taking other actions against militant organizations, and asked India to take note of these developments. His remarks were seen as being directed at India, which has refused to acknowledge Gen Musharraf’s efforts, saying they were not enough.

But in his telephone call to the Pakistani leader on Saturday, Mr Bush was said to have taken a sharper line, reportedly urging Gen Musharraf “to take additional strong and decisive measures to eliminate the extremists who seek to harm India, undermine Pakistan, provoke a war between India and Pakistan, and destabilize the international coalition against terrorism”.